Family Man

Reviewed by:
Jane Crawford

We know, we know, you’ve heard it all before: a flawed and aging hero wonders what his life would have been like if he’d made different choices, never been born, hit the winning homerun, or, in this case, married his college sweetheart. To make a halfway decent movie, this tired premise demands a well-written script and a well-chosen cast. Luckily, Family Man has both. Nicolas Cage does one hell of a confused stare, Téa Leoni exhibits her ample assets, and Jeremy Piven’s aged fratboy fits well into Cage’s simulated suburban life. The expected cheeseball moments are delivered. (There is crying. There is kissing. There are children.) However, the gratuitously corny scenes are infrequent enough that they’re tolerable. Family Man is not the best choice for a night out with the boys, or even a hot date (unless you’re trying to come off as a sensitive, child-lovin’ type), but if you and the ’rents are headed to the mall for some holiday movie fun, this is the flick for you.

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